For thought and meditation

[rl69]

And Elijah came to all the people, and said, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him." But the people answered him not a word."

—1 Kings 18:21

When I chose to follow Christ, I decided it was all or nothing. I wasn’t raised in the church; I pretty much did what I wanted for the first 17 years of my life. I was a very worldly person and had no Christian worldview or moral upbringing.

As a result, when I heard the message of the gospel and saw who Jesus Christ was, I wanted to go for it. I didn’t want to try to live in both worlds. I’d had enough of the world and knew how empty it was. I knew the promises it made never would be fulfilled. I lost interest in it. I fully committed to following Christ.

That was the day my eternal destiny literally changed. It was the day I passed from darkness to light and found new purpose and meaning. But something else happened that day. A battle began. It’s been said that conversion has made our hearts a battlefield. This is a battle that goes back a long way. It’s essentially a battle between good and evil, right and wrong, righteousness and unrighteousness. It’s a battle between God and Satan.

Like it or not, you are in this battle, and you must choose which side you want to be on. As Elijah said to the people on Mount Carmel, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him” (1 Kings 18:21).

I see so many Christians who try to live in two worlds. They want enough Christianity to get them to Heaven, but they still want to live like hell, for all practical purposes. It’s the most miserable existence of all.

If you’re going to be a Christian, be a sold-out one. Be a committed one. Decide today how you’re going to live

[Pine Baron]

Thank you rl. There certainly is no "half-way".

[dverna]

It is not always easy.

Let's say the Christian sect you belong to sees homosexuality as a sin. You discover your child is a homosexual. Your child is a Christian in every other way and finds a sect that accepts homosexuals.

Do you hold to your beliefs and disown your child? Do you find a Christian sect that accepts homosexuality?

[HATCH]

I see so many Christians who try to live in two worlds. They want enough Christianity to get them to Heaven, but they still want to live like hell, for all practical purposes. It’s the most miserable existence of all.


this statement is so true.

I had a coworker that was a Bible-thumper (on offense intended). He would preach certain passages that suited him.
He would chastise those who did things morally wrong (not sexual in nature, just not the right thing).

Yet when it came to what he did and the way he did things he didn't follow the Bible or the preaching of JC. He did what suited best for him.

We had many discussions over the 15 years I worked there.

RL, thank you for your thoughts everyday.

[Boaz]

Thank you rl69 , good lesson and reminder . Talks cheap it's the doing (commitment) that counts .

[Ickisrulz]

It is not always easy.

Let's say the Christian sect you belong to sees homosexuality as a sin. You discover your child is a homosexual. Your child is a Christian in every other way and finds a sect that accepts homosexuals.

Do you hold to your beliefs and disown your child? Do you find a Christian sect that accepts homosexuality?

How much do you believe the Bible states God's wishes for man? The Bible says homosexual behavior is morally wrong. Of course it also says fornication (a behavior) is wrong. Christians are expected to control their behavior. This means that we cannot give into some of the things we'd like to. This is easier for some than others. A heterosexual couple can get married and have all the sex they want. This is not an option for homosexuals. It's a tough row to hoe for sure as there is certainly a biological component to it.

Accepting a homosexual as a member of your family or church is different than condoning homosexual behavior. We should treat every person with love. So you can hold your beliefs and still love your child.

BTW there have been many Christians who have escaped the homosexual lifestyle.

[Blackwater]

It is not always easy.

Let's say the Christian sect you belong to sees homosexuality as a sin. You discover your child is a homosexual. Your child is a Christian in every other way and finds a sect that accepts homosexuals.

Do you hold to your beliefs and disown your child? Do you find a Christian sect that accepts homosexuality?

This is a thorny question because we so often adhere to man's theological interpretations rather than simply listening to God's Holy Word and our own consciences. God gave us a conscience so that we could be guided by it, and it very much works as a "governor" on our wills. I've seen and heard all sorts of "theories" and interpretations about how homosexuals are either inconvertible or convertible, but all seem to come from man's mind, and not God's. Personally, if I had a child that was homosexual, as much as homosexuality internally disgusts me, I'd treat that child like a Christian is supposed to treat ALL his brothers and sisters, and yes, I'd try, as best as I knew how, to talk to him about his homosexuality, and how by far the great mass of Biblical interpretation says it's a sin. In short, I'd do all I could to get HIM to convert HIMSELF. And if that failed, I'd still love him, and let him know that he's loved, no matter what. But within that love, there'd be great concern for his immortal soul. This isn't something that comes naturally to us willful humans. We have expectations of our young, and when they're not met, we have a very strong tendency to react emotionally, and more specifically, with anger. But in anger, there really IS no way to help things be better. Only worse. Suicides are more common among homosexuals than among the heterosexuals, and anyone in that position would need to keep that in mind, for if a child commits suicide (and yes, it DOES happen, and not always to "the other guy"), then all hope of seeing him or her reformed is then lost.

How does God deal with homosexuals? I have to admit I don't really, truly know, but indications in the Bible aren't promising, according to my reading of them. Why is this? I don't know. I only have the mind of a man, not of God. He has His ways and we have ours, and our job is to more fully conform to His will rather than ours, even when and if we don't understand fully WHY He's given us what we have to go on to come to understand His will and the reasons therefor. This is where simple Faith comes in. We follow Him with our simple Faith, and sometimes, we don't really, fully understand Him and His ways, but we have simple Faith that He's right, and that's reasonable because of our experiences with Him in the past.

We "see through the glass darkly" in many matters, and that's where it's most crucial that we follow Him based on our Faith in Him, and our certain knowledge that we're error prone, while He's not. One day, I think we'll understand things like this much better.

And I've often wondered that if a parent has a child who's homosexual, if this isn't one of those cases where it's the parent who's being tried as much or moreso than the child?

As to taking him to a church, I'd take him to whatever church I attended, and if that church didn't accept him, I'd move to another church that did. He or she needs to know that there's a LOT more to Christianity and Christian churches and people than mere judgmentalism. It's not OUR job to judge, but to nurture as best as we know how to do that. Whether it's enough or not remains to be seen until the final fruition. And yes, I do in fact understand that even though we love our children more than just about anything on earth, they are their own separate beings, and MUST decide for themselves what path they will follow, and whom they'll serve in this life. And I understand that ALL of them will never choose the way WE want them to choose.

More and more, I tend to leave the judging up to God, and I just try to play whatever part I believe, based on all I know, is most likely to end up good for those I deal with. In reality, I suspect that's all any of us CAN do. To think of our children as being lost, and condemned to eternal damnation, is the most repugnant thought this side of the green grass, I think, but .... we know for sure that some WILL be lost, despite our best and most sincere and valiant efforts. This is just the reality of life, and though one of the heaviest burdens a human can bear, it's inescapable for some.

But God is all powerful if we or our children or anyone else will simply LET Him be. We too often try to predict or "know" the future, even though we cannot, and know we can't. In very serious matters like this, I think we simply have to go with God's most nurturing instruction, and try to leave the judging up to God. It's really all one CAN do, and I see no reason not to do all one CAN. I think we owe it to the child, and to all of posterity. That's MY answer, anyway. You'll likely get others, but that's just MINE.

[rl69]

Thank you Ickisrulz